Runaway
by elzataerinn
Summary: After the savage mammal case was concluded and its mastermind apprehended, life began to return to normal in Zootopia. Except for Larry. A short story follow-up to Zootopia, featuring Gary and Larry.
1. Chapter 1

Leodore Lionheart was sitting at a corner lounge of The Vistas by himself. It was weekday, and the bar was relatively empty. One or two patrons probably were gossiping about him; what Zootopian wouldn't know who he was, anyway? He paid no heed to the murmurs, prefering to just sit and watch around as he waited for someone. He had asked that mammal to come at 4 o'clock, and his watch told him that he still had over ten minutes of waiting time.

At times he reminisced about Bellwether. Just what could have made her go that far to ruin Zootopia? Had he given her too much work and too little recognition? Or perhaps he just didn't know how to properly treat someone of Bellwether's stature? Whatever the case was, he admitted perhaps he had done Bellwether little good. Getting the right help from the right people was such a difficult thing.

An antelope waitress approached Lionheart and whispered something. Lionheart merely nodded, having understood that his guest was here. Soon after, a brown timberwolf appeared.

"Greetings, Sir," said the wolf as he assumed a ready stance.

"Good afternoon, Larry," Lionheart greeted back, "have a seat."

Larry complied and seated himself across Lionheart. In his head, Lionheart was wondering why Larry was alone. The few times he liaised with wolves, never once he met a lone wolf. He recalled that the first time he met Larry, the wolf was accompanied by a white wolf named Gary, a cheery one in contrast to Larry. Lionheart even assumed that Gary was enthusiastic about the prospect of a job, smiles occasionally peeking from his otherwise calm face.

"I believe I have mentioned to you about my reason for hiring you this time?" Lionheart queried.

"Yes, sir. Some guests from out-of-town would be visiting Zootopia in two days and you would like us to escort them."

"Good," Lionheart then produced a brown envelope and slid it across his table, "These documents contain the necessary details. This is mostly private matter, so please keep it down."

"Certainly, sir," Larry replied as he took the envelope and slipped it into his jacket. Lionheart sometimes wondered if all private guards loved to dress in black.

"By the way, why aren't you with a company today?"

Larry didn't immediately answer.

"Or did something happen with the white one? Gary, was it?"

"He's feeling unwell, sir," Larry replied, and Lionheart felt the wolf's words sounded rather tense although physically his demeanor barely shifted, "so today I don't take him along."

"I see. I suppose I asked too much," Lionheart leaned backwards, "I have nothing else to say. You may leave."

Larry bowed to Lionheart before leaving, dropping his blank expression once he exited the bar and met two timberwolves, packmembers Wilfred and Boris, before they drove off in a van. He began perusing the documents Lionheart gave him, but at times he looked out longingly to the horizon.

He did not take Gary along, that much is true. Gary was feeling unwell, well, it appeared that he had been depressed ever since the group were thrown to jail for aiding Mayor Lionheart over three months ago. Larry sorely recalled how sometimes Gary said it's his fault that the pack was imprisoned, to the point that Larry had to insist that Gary stop thinking about it that way. Even after the truth of the event went out and they were bailed out with Lionheart's aid, Gary's mood never improved, not until he just disappeared a few days ago. He said he only wanted some fresh air. Why hadn't he returned? Larry sighed. Had someone attacked Gary? Like the case with those mammals who went savage? Larry silently shook his head. Any savage mammal would have made enough ruckus in the neighborhood, and they wouldn't have had the mind to cleverly evade anyone out to confront them. Gary, on the other hand, seemingly had deliberately disappeared. _Deliberately disappeared_. Larry hated the thought of it. He could only hope that Gary would return soon. With that said, he continued his work.

* * *

The corners of Savannah Central might not be as noisy as the parts nearer to the Downtown after sunset, but the dense brick jungle made them feel crowded. Even in places where there were few residents, including some places with derelict building perhaps due for demolition, half-empty apartment blocks, or back alleys, nowhere was ever really quiet. Shops and cafes were abound, subdued as they were compared to the ones running at day. Some bars weren't even distinguishable from residential units or empty houses as they didn't hang their signages overtly.

A figure in hooded jacket was strolling down a back alley quite a distance away from Elm St. He occasionally gazed up whenever he passed by an arced door, and when he chanced upon a sign that said "Nightwiches", he decided to enter. The bar was half-full, the ambience was rather dingy thanks to the curtained windows, there was some mellow music on the radio, and the patrons paid no heed to the figure who just walked in. He pulled his hood down, revealing himself as a white wolf. He signaled to a deer waitress as he grabbed a rather dim corner seat adjacent to a window. While waiting for his order, he browsed his phone, a second-hand he bought just a few days ago. There was a few messages from someone named M. Rio.

"Hi, Gary. Thanks again for the escort. Daddy's angry that I got hit by those hyena bullies, but I'm fine. Just minor bruises. At least not on my face. Tee hee. Are you ok though? You had to brawl with so many of them. Oh well, hope to see you again, bye."

Marco Riodores, son of a wealthy capybara businessman named Carlos Riodores, who lived somewhere in southern Rainforest District. Gary huffed. Mr. Riodores was among his first clients ever since he decided to become freelance bodyguard. The task was normal enough: Marco wanted to go to Sahara Square for leisure, and all Gary needed to do was to escort the young boy. Who knew some people hated the Riodores so much as to stalk the boy all the way to the Square to attack him?

Gary reminisced about his tumultous guard duty last night. While escorting the boy at the Square, he and the boy were accosted by three hyenas, probably some hired thugs. Merely taking down those hyenas all by himself would have been trivial, but having to protect the boy at the same time was a handful. The hyenas managed to assault the boy as he tussled with them. And he didn't fully subdue the hyenas either, as some ZPD forces happened to be nearby and forced the hyenas to flee, with Gary himself having to follow suit with Marco in tow. Thanks to that, this morning Mr. Riodores angrily called him out for not doing his job, and he was thankful that he got paid at all by Marco, who said his little compensation fee was tip, likely without his father's knowledge. That boy was too nice.

After thanking Marco, Gary slipped his phone into his pocket as the deer waitress served his drink order. In between slurping his drink, he peeked out of the curtained window. He saw a bear walked past, then some time later a couple of chatting bisons, then a wolf, at which point he instinctively looked to his left. Nobody. Gary remembered that he was now all by himself ever since that night.

Gary slumped backwards and drifted to memory. After the pack was released from jail about a week ago, they had mostly stayed at their Tundratown base, somewhere around Avalanche district, to rest and prepare for any future jobs. Then one night, he told Larry, who was in the garage with Lucas and Boris, that he wanted to cool off at the bay. Larry might have suspected something, but he still gave Gary a go-ahead anyway, only asking him to return before midnight as there would be soup for supper. But Gary packed his cash and small essentials into his hoodie before leaving, grabbing a half-finished sandwich on his way out. On the way to the bay, Gary was alone, having detected none of his pack following him. He stopped midway towards his destination, then slipped out of the main roads and dashed to the nearest train station. Larry and the others probably had just started tracking him at Tundratown when he had already reached somewhere past the Riverside, and he had resided at Savannah Central ever since.

 _I shouldn't be burdening you guys anymore. Sorry._

Gary then just finished his drink, left some money at the cashier and went off to rest. He'd go find another client tomorrow.


	2. Chapter 2

Larry was in the van with Raul and Lucas as they made way to Savannah Central. At times, Larry glanced at a folder in his paw. Raul and Lucas were going to meet a jackal who lived somewhere at Berry Lane for business, and Larry had asked Lucas to take him along and drop him at ZPD headquartes to submit a missing mammal case. Yet, Larry still felt uneasy about asking for ZPD's help to find Gary, and the three of them spoke nothing of it until they reached ZPD and Larry was hesitant to alight.

"Something wrong?" Lucas asked.

Larry didn't reply as he reached for the door handle, but he was hesitant to open it.

"You're still not sure about asking for ZPD's help, are you?" Raul surmised.

"Well," Larry the opened the door and stepped out, "Sorry, I shouldn't be holding you up like this."

"If you're not sure about this, then don't do it."

"I just need some push to do this, I guess. You go ahead and take care of the supplies."

"If you say so."

Larry closed the door, but didn't take a step away from the van. Raul watched with concern.

"Larry?"

Larry merely glanced back and waved at Raul and Lucas as he began walking towards ZPD. Raul waved back before Lucas drove off. As Larry paced forward, he was drowning in thoughts. It had been about a week since Gary disappeared, and the pack had been scouring Tundratown empty-handed in-between taking on jobs. There was also one time when the pack took a mission at around Haymarket, and Larry spared some time to search for any sign of Gary, again fruitlessly. Gary had left his phone behind, so contacting him was not an option. And the few times the pack howled trying to find Gary, he was never the one to reply. ZPD would be Larry's last resort to find Gary, even if he disliked that option.

Larry stopped short of his destination, then opened the folder he was carrying. Inside it was a photo of him and Gary, clipped to a piece of paper with some information that he planned to show the ZPD so that they could take the case. Larry then closed the folder and slid it into his jacket, then resumed his walk towards ZPD. And yet mere few feet away from the entrance, he shook his head and left, heedless of a few civilian and police officers who probably looked at him, deciding to not submit the missing mammal case after all.

Larry didn't count the minutes he had wasted sitting on a bench in a park near ZPD, his mind still wandering. It was just like what Raul pointed out; Larry was still not sure about asking for ZPD's help to find Gary. Gary is one of the pack, one of the family, so he'd rather continue searching for him without outside help. Especially considering that they had been in jail before; getting ZPD involved in this might complicate things instead. Larry then pulled out his phone and started texting Raul to pick him up, and the two wolves arrived in a little over thirty minutes.

"You're fast," Larry asked Raul once he got in the van.

"That jackal is our best supplies partner at the Savannah. Should you be surprised?" Raul replied.

"True," Larry gazed around the van to see food supplies and combat gears, no doubt from the aforementioned jackal, "Still, sometimes I think Berry Lane is very far from here."

"Shortcuts," Lucas said. Larry worriedly began imagining Lucas driving the van through the back alleys.

"We also saw Dr. Madge at home earlier," Raul spoke.

Madge, the badger doctor who was with them back at Cliffside Asylum. Larry understood that his packmate Wilfred sometimes met her to practise first aid and such, especially since Dr. Madge kept a few medical devices at her home that Wilfred could use as practice. Another packmate, Connor, was also close to her, though given his overall friendliness it was nothing special. Larry then realized something.

"You stopped by her to say hi and you still managed to pick me up this fast?"

"Well, I did say hi," Raul waved his phone.

 _Oh, so he merely texted her as they went past_.

"Anyway," Raul continued, "you've decided not to enlist ZPD's help this time?"

Larry was silent.

"So what's next?" Raul inquired.

"Maybe I'll get a good rest first tonight before making plans about Gary tomorrow," Larry replied.

Larry's phone then beeped, and he took it out to find that Connor had sent a message.

"Hi, still at ZPD? Just saying, how bout we try this cafe called The Alpacas by the Prairie tomorrow night to relax a bit? You've been looking so stressed you know. Anyway, what do you say?"

"Well, that's interesting," Raul mused as he read the message.

"Indeed," Larry smiled, "I guess it doesn't hurt."

"Strange that he just said this only now. Makes me wonder why he thought that."

"We'll find out later. Better yet, we'll all discuss this together with Wilfred and Boris later as well."

"Ok."

Larry texted back to Connor as the wolves just went into Tundratown.

* * *

Gary was sitting on across a desk opposite of an old sun bear in an office room. A female bear with glasses, his daughter, sat on the desk, at times looking at her nails. Behind the older bear were two leopards, his personal guards. It was almost sundown outside.

"So," the old bear spoke, "basically what happened yesterday at Watering Hole was that you suspected someone was following you and you scoured entire blocks to find the culprit, only to end up alerting the Street Ursines and you had to take a detour to deliver that suitcase three hours later than scheduled?"

"Yes," Gary replied as calmly as possible.

The old bear sighed.

"At least our partners got the documents," the female bear spoke, "but now they have to reschedule a few things."

"Indeed, Iryn," the old bear concurred, then turned again to Gary, "This job should have been easy if you were just to focus on delivering instead of snooping around too much."

"I'm sorry for being too cautious, Sir."

"Nevermind. We'll make do with what we have," the old bear then signaled to one of his guards, who then produced an envelope and gave it to Larry while the bear continued, "Take that pay of yours this time. You are dismissed."

Gary then left the bear's office building, a nondescript ten-storey office complex at the edge of Downtown district. As he skulked southward under the setting sun, he reminisced on the bear, who said he was enemies with some southern-area gang named the Street Ursines. The bear briefed Gary that whenever he needed to liaise with his partners, he usually hired other mammals to do everything to minimize contact with the Ursines, from mission briefing to delivery. It was like what the bear complained about; Gary was too observant to potential hazards during his task that he ended up alarming some Ursines who proceeded to try apprehending him for nosing around their neighborhood. Gary managed to elude the Ursines after a brief scuffle and get long enough lead until he was satisfied that his pursuers had broken off the chase and he could finish the delivery.

As Gary walked southwards towards the coast, he recalled how Larry sometimes praised his alertness during missions, as he was often the first to notice suspicious events. However, he also recalled how at other times Larry chided him for responding hastily to potential hazards, causing problems during the assignments. He imagined Larry would get upset whenever he caused hassle to the pack by going off-path to investigate, or accidentally bringing unwanted attention. Gary drifted back to the savage mammals case, a significantly major mission compared to the previous few they had taken before. They had been able to follow Mayor Lionheart's orders for two weeks, but that howling on that fateful night must have eventually tipped off the ZPD somehow. He cursed himself for that fiasco. Had he not been so noisy, or perhaps had he not been there at all, their capture and imprisonment wouldn't have happened. It might have been better if Larry were to take his time choosing better partners. There was a time that his mistake failed a job and cost the pack income. That time at the asylum, his carelessness cost them so many months in jail. Next time, what?

For some reason Gary stopped as he gazed upwards towards the violet sky. The building he's looking at appeared vacant, although he surmised there were probably someone who lived at the ground floor flats. He suddenly thought about climbing up there; perhaps the vista up there might help him relax. Once he was sure nobody was watching, he quickly made his ascent via the outside stairs all the way to the roof. There, he gazed towards the sea, mild breezes occasionally whisked by. Gary just stood there, watching the city at night from the rooftop. Maybe he should take a rest up here instead of his flat just for tonight. Or maybe once he's done with the scenery-watching, he'd take the rooftop path back.

* * *

"Table for six, under the name Connor," Connor talked to the llama receptionist of The Alpacas.

"Please wait," the receptionist checked on her computer, "According to your reservation, you would like a table at the rooftops. Therefore we have prepared table number 8 for you."

"Thank you," replied Connor as he saw Lucas and Boris on their way from the parking lot.

The wolves were then guided to their table by a llama waitress, and shortly after they began browsing the menu. Connor helped the others decide what to order, saying that he and Wilfred had perused the menu online yesterday. Lucas and Boris were quick to decide on drinks, but took their sweet time for the meal. Wilfred chose a few salad and fruit platters, very much unlike Raul. Larry's mind wandered in between reading the menu, and he settled on his dish last.

"So, how did you get wind of this place?" Boris asked Connor.

"Some jaguars were talking about it two days ago when we went to Swine&Elephant," came the reply.

"When you and Wilfred bought soap," Lucas chimed.

"Yep," Connor nodded.

Boris then happened to look at Larry and thought something was wrong.

"You're fidgeting, Larry."

Larry realized that Boris noticed his restlessness despite his very minimal gestures.

"I know you thought you should have asked one of us to accompany Gary that day," Raul spoke, "I wish I were home when that happened."

"I was careless," Larry murmured.

"Well... no use to sulk about it right now. Once we calm down, we can think of our next step," said Wilfred.

"Looks like the appetizers are here," Boris pointed out.

The wolves then began their dinner.

* * *

Gary looked at his wallet. All those jobs he had been taking so far had helped him survive, but he always felt like he was at the brink. He hadn't been eating as much as he used to, and buying that duffel bag three days ago felt like buying a car, although it certainly was useful. He was at least pleased that his flat was comfy and secure enough for the fee, since he was sure he would unlikely be able to afford anything pricier.

Gary then gazed out the window, and suddenly he thought about home, the Tundratown base. He sometimes asked himself if leaving was the right choice. He remembered that he joined Larry's pack, whom Larry mentioned he established not long prior to their meeting, maybe two months before the Night Howler incident. They had been doing mostly well as mercenaries; for all the peace and order in Zootopia, there were still those who'd rather handle things outside the reaches of law. Still, Gary sometimes imagined how much better off the pack would have been if not for him. Probably they'd have already been the most reputable wolfpack mercenaries in Zootopia.

Gary shook his head. Too much thinking would do him no good. He then browsed his phone. There were pictures of ads for various ad-hoc jobs he had been snapping, most of which were taken earlier today. He figured that if he were to focus on only bodyguarding jobs, he wouldn't make enough for a living. However, none of the advertisers had given any positive reply, so he deleted those ads. There was a hello message from Marco some time ago, which he had replied with a smiley. Then there was a new message from someone named Serfin. Gary raised an eyebrow trying to remember who this could be as he read the message.

"Heard about you from Iryn. Could you take me to Barclwas at Lions Gate and back? If yes, meet me at my house, 23 East Baobab Lane. Will give you the details later."

A friend of the daughter of the bear yesterday. Gary smiled and decided to accept the request. After he's satisfied with Serfin's briefing, he decided to survey Lions Gate, taking the southern coastal area to reach there.

* * *

The wolves except Connor were at the rooftops of The Alpacas, satisfied with their dinner. The rooftops faced the southern coastline directly. To the left was the sea, dark except for some dots of yellow and white from some boats and yatches. To the right were residential buildings which were rather quiet, their residents perhaps having gone to bed.

"Nice view," said Lucas.

"And nice restaurant too," Wilfred added, "No wonder those jaguars were gushing over this."

"That was a nice dish I had there," Boris spoke as he licked his muzzle, "Maybe I could do with a second helping."

The others giggled as mild sea breeze came by, just as Connor came over to them.

"Okay, bill's settled," he chimed as he sniffed the breeze, "though, yeah, I kinda agree we should stick around for a while."

"Agreed," Raul concurred, "I'm surprised this place isn't so warm. Well, still not as wonderfully chilly as Tundratown."

"I guess because it's night," answered Wilfred.

"Hm, hm."

The wolves then turned towards Larry, who soon realized he was being stared at.

"Well..." Larry was not sure what he should say.

"Just say you enjoy, Larry," Lucas prodded, "Or you don't?"

"Thanks for the night, guys," Larry smiled.

"That's better," Raul smiled back, followed by the others who cheerfully high-fived one another. Connor then started a howl, which prompted Wilfred and Lucas to join in.

And before the others joined the howl, there was another howl somewhere from the coastal buildings.

Larry promptly banged at the rooftop railing to silence his howling packmates. Just as the howl faded, Connor nearly howled again, but Larry immediately gestured him to keep quiet.

"Heh, there are wolfpacks here," Boris mused, but he then saw Larry scrutinizing the coastal area.

"I don't think that was a pack," Larry replied. Where did that howl come from? And he felt that howl sounded familiar.

Raul guessed, "You mean..."

"Ok, Connor, try howling again," Larry said without looking away from the coasts.

Connor complied, and Wilfred followed. After they finished howling, the same howl was heard from the same locale, but it was abruptly cut off. Worry dawned upon Larry.

"Let's investigate," Raul initiated, "I know what you're thinking, Larry. We'll investigate."

Larry merely nodded as the pack quickly left The Alpacas, with Connor hastily saying thank you to the llama receptionist on the way out.

"Ok, Lucas, Raul, you get in the van and search the streets," Larry began issuing orders when they reach their van, "The rest, follow me on foot. Boris, you go with me and search by the coast. Connor, Wilfred, split from us and search the back alleys. Call if you see something important, and make contact in thirty minutes for rendezvous."

* * *

Gary was running in the back alleys as he let out grumbles from his muzzle, which he had forcibly clamped with his paw. Why did he answer another howl? That wasn't the first time he responded to a howl when he shouldn't have. He was a foreigner in this block; Wolfpacks here wouldn't necessarily appreciate his presence.

Gary cursed himself as he darted around in darkness. He was just about to walk out into the open coastal area when he heard the first howl. Part of him implored him to keep quiet, which he didn't do. As he began backtracking, he heard the second howl, and he forcibly silenced himself as he resumed his retreat. Right now, he hadn't run into anyone yet, but with shadows flickering at a distance and blurred figures somewhere far in sight, he decided to seek a hiding place. He recognized this particular spot; not far from where he lay under the sky last night. Perhaps whoever was pursuing him might not suspect that he might be hiding up there. He then wasted no time in grabbing onto the outside stairs and climbing all the way up, then he curled up under a nook.

He heard a few more howls, now coming from somewhere closer than the earlier chorus. For a second he thought the howl sounded familiar, but he chose to keep still and clasp his muzzle tighter. _Don't respond, don't respond, don't respond_.

* * *

"Everyone's here," Larry glanced at his pack as they gathered at a parking lot near the southern bay, noticing that Connor and Wilfred looked quite exhausted.

"Street's empty," Lucas reported.

"Didn't see him in the alleys," Wilfred added.

"Not around the coasts either," Boris concluded.

"But I heard a few howls from the alleys," Raul mentioned.

"One was me," Connor raised his paw, "I checked on one who replied, but that was a stranger. Thankfully non-hostile."

Larry sighed. Attracting attention in a foreign locale wasn't exactly a good idea in this situation, but that wasn't his biggest concern given that everyone was safe.

"What should we do, Larry?" asked Raul, "Should we search again?"

Larry struggled for words. He told himself that the howl came from Gary, and yet none of the pack managed to find him. Was he imagining things? Or had Gary indeed been hiding here at Savannah Central all this time? Moreover, that second howl stopped short; whoever made that howl was deliberately silenced.

"Larry?" Wilfred broke the silence.

"You guys ok if we try searching again?" Larry asked, "And if we still haven't found him tonight, you guys ok if we prepare to scour Savannah Central tomorrow?"

Everyone nodded firmly. Larry smiled.

"Thanks, guys."

"So what's the plan this time?" Raul asked.

"Boris and Lucas, take the van and search north. Raul and Wilfred, you go west. Connor, you and I go east. Meet back here in fifteen minutes."

The wolves then swiftly resumed their search.

* * *

Dim lights from the cloudy morning sky peeked from the curtains, and Gary woke up frowning. He was still stressed out from the ordeal last night, when he had to sneak back to his room via the rooftops while trying not to alarm unwanted mammals, making his way one roof-hop at a time every time he ascertained there was no one watching him. Although that was minor issue compared to having to stay absolutely still for he forgot how long until he heard no more howling or other commotion. As a result, he went to bed later than his usual time, and he spent a few sleeping hours alert and anxious.

Gary listlessly groped around his desk for his phone, only to realize after a stretch that he was still wearing the pants he wore last night and his phone was still in his pocket. He sighed, pulled out his phone and saw 11:32 on the screen. _That was late_. He forced himself awake to clean up and dress up. Maybe he should get himself some coffee before tonight's task.

* * *

Larry and Raul were analyzing a Savannah Central map in the briefing room. The two had spent the entire morning planning for the most efficient paths to traverse to hopefully find Gary at the Savannah, while Wilfred and Connor were preparing gears and supplies in the garage as Lucas and Boris were out in the streets. The map had been dotted with numbered stickers, with their impromptu rendezvous point last night being marked as 1 and the rest of the numbers meandering from there, with some numbers having letters A or B. Behind Larry was another Savannah map plastered on a whiteboard wall, the map having been scribbled all over.

"Okay, based on my current estimates, we should be able to cover all these points in two to three hours into midnight," Larry spoke.

"Agreed," Raul replied.

"But we also need to consider the terrains. Some of these points are likely connected via mismatched elevations and even impassable obstacles."

"I guess we can only start pinpointing those points once Lucas and Boris came back from surveying."

Larry nodded.

"Okay, we've moved the necessary gears and supplies to the garage," Wilfred interrupted as he entered the room followed by Connor.

"Thanks, both of you," Larry smiled back.

The two entering wolves positioned themselves surrounding the map on the table.

"So basically we'll start from our rendezvous point last night and fan out from there?" Wilfred inquired.

"The six of us will split only into two groups," Larry explained, "Remember last night, Connor? Assume we'll run into hostiles this time considering what we're doing, so it's best we don't operate as too many units, and to be more cautious in traversal and communication."

Connor sheepishly nodded. Larry probably thought his howling last night was careless.

"If you think Larry was angry that you howled last night, Connor, it was more because you were only with Wilfred and that we weren't equipped for that sudden search," Raul clarified, "Tonight is different."

"Oh," Connor smiled nervously.

"That's minor issue now given that nothing bad actually happened," Larry interjected, "and besides, I'm planning to sweep high and low."

Wilfred began fidgeting.

"Worried about something, Wilfred?" asked Raul.

"Well... nothing much really," Wilfred answered, "We haven't done much of this at the Savannah, so I'm just a bit nervous."

"Speaking of high and low," Connor uttered, "You're saying that we're gonna do some climbing?"

"Yes," Larry confirmed.

A sound of a car horn interrupted their discussion. Wilfred promptly left the briefing room to open the garage door, and a few minutes later he came back with Boris and Lucas in tow. Boris proceeded to pick a laptop, plugged his phone onto it and began presenting some images, mostly photos he took during his and Lucas' patrol. Lucas joined the rest over the main map as they continue their planning, now taking those latest information into account.

"Ok, so this will be the last version of our routes. We can confirm now that our plans for within three miles inland from the coast can stay," Larry concluded, "But anything beyond that has to be scoured either mostly on the grounds or from the last hour before midnight to minimize ruckus."

Raul nodded as he looked at the entire pack, "Now to split the team."

"I'll be on team A and Raul B," Larry began, "For route A, Boris and Wilfred will join me, so that leaves Lucas and Connor with Raul for route B. For team A, the paths will be mostly away from main roads, and in fact there will be a few rooftop traversals. For team B, Lucas will mostly remain on the streets while the others follow within fifty yards. There will be a few convergence points such as point 5 where we may rearrange our teams, so keep in touch to have both teams to be within a hundred yards of each other at those points. Any question?"

No one raised an objection.

"Ok. We'll make our last preparations before we depart for our starting point at 7," Larry concluded as his mind was filled with only one thing. _Please, Gary, tell me it really is you_.


	3. Chapter 3

The Barclaws Music Club at Lions Gate was quite lively tonight, with plenty of mammals partying. The club's main building appeared shuttered off, and the revellers enjoyed the night on the open field opposite of the club which had been cleared off of all furnitures which were now stashed at one corner. Hung over the club's wall was a banner that said "Barclaws Special Saturday", with "Interspecies Fun: Showcase Your Differences" label plastered on it. The revellers were mostly in pairs of different mammals; there was a tiger dancing with an ibex, a coyote chatting with a horse, to name a few.

It was a quarter past ten when a female moose left the party followed by Gary. Both of them appeared to have enjoyed the party, and Gary was a little amused at how the moose barely appeared tired after partying from almost seven. He kept a sprightly demeanor to match her cheerfulness even as he was fanning himself due to the sweltering atmosphere.

"As far as boyfriends go, you're not bad," the moose teased Gary as she put on her jacket.

Gary smirked, unsure of what to say.

"Thanks for partying with me," the moose continued.

"Good for me if you're happy, Serfin," Gary replied.

"Yeah. Now, to go home," Serfin the moose started walking northwards into the back alleys.

"Wait, Serfin," Gary quickly interposed himself between Serfin and the back alley, "let's take another route back."

"What?" Serfin protested, "We walked this way when we went to the club."

"Well, that was 6 and it wasn't so dark and quiet," Gary countered as he pointed at the now-dark and quiet alleys.

"But I want to get home before 11," Serfin pouted, "Besides, I've got you."

Gary was aghast in his mind. Was this moose so crazy as to walk in the alleys at night regularly? Or was she high from a cocktail she gulped down earlier? Actually no, she looked sober enough, but perhaps way over-confident.

"Ok, ok," Garry conceded, "The shortest path is a straight line, I get it. Let's go."

"Yay," Serfin started skipping forward.

Gary quickly kept pace with Serfin as they walked in the alleys back to Serfin's home. While scrutinizing the quiet, sparsely-lit alleys, Gary thought back at accepting Serfin's request to escort her to Barclaws. He was not informed that the party Serfin planned to attend tonight was about celebrating the diversity of Zootopians, and he was even less prepared when Serfin only clarified at the club that he was to be something of a boyfriend-for-hire on top of being a bodyguard. She said that she's a regular at the club, but she wasn't prepared for this week's "Interspecies Fun" theme, where patrons who came as mismatched pair of species would get one free drink, and more goodies if the pair were prey-predator. Thus Serfin scrambled to get someone to pair with until her friend Iryn the sun bear, who wasn't a party-goer, mentioned Gary in passing. Gary couldn't help but chuckle at the entire situation.

About ten minutes passed uneventfully as Gary tried to keep pace with Serfin, who was going a bit too fast for Gary's comfort. He himself had been comfortable with the alleys despite a few unsavory mammals who loitered in the dark, but having to keep an eye on someone else in the same situation was rather problematic. Gary sighed quietly, hoping that they'd get back to Serfin's home fast enough without incident.

When the two of them walked past an intersection, Gary caught glimpse of some bears coming from the left alley. He froze as he began guessing whether or not those bears were hostile. Serfin noticed him and stopped on her track.

"What's wrong, Gary?"

Gary snapped out of his thought and realized he had just stopped. Curses. There he went again, trying to assess some strangers when he should have been more concerned about escorting his charge home.

"Nothing," Gary began walking again, "Let's move-"

"Hey, what's up?" One of the bears was already right behind them.

Gary spared a glimpse at the bear before he nudged Serfin to walk in front of him.

"What's wrong huh, lovebirds?" Another bear chased after Gary and grabbed his right arm, and Gary turned around to swat the bear's paw before he continued walking.

"Wait," the first bear, judging from the voice, seemed to realize something, "Hey, you're the pup snooping around at Watering Hole."

 _Watering Hole? Oh no_.

"Faster," Gary whispered to Serfin, "I think I know who they are."

Serfin nodded nervously as she began to haste.

"Hey, we still have business from the last time, puppy," The second bear barked, "Get him."

Gary thus started running with Serfin in tow, having counted three Ursines in pursuit. He remembered that the alley that stretched ahead of them was exactly the same path he and Serfin took to go to the club. He needed to divert the Ursines; obviously he couldn't just run straight to Serfin's house when there were bears chasing after them. At one intersection Gary happened to look to his left and thought he saw a large road at the end of that alley way, maybe hundred yards away. He got a plan.

"Go left later," Gary told Serfin.

"Huh?"

"Main road."

Gary wasn't sure if Serfin responded. He hoped she agreed, but moreover, he hoped he was right, especially since the Ursines were still close by.

"Ah!"

Just as they reached another intersection, Serfin stumbled on a dumpster and fell, and as Gary pulled her up he saw the Ursines about to catch up to them. He glanced towards the end of the alley hoping that it really was a large road, and he thought he saw a police car parked on the other side. Excellent. Gary immediately shoved the dumpster towards the incoming Ursines, and the frontmost bear tumbled straight onto him. As Gary tried to lock the bear, he yelled at Serfin and hinted to her to run for the road.

"Go!"

Serfin, thankfully not too injured, immediatelly made a run as the locked bear threw Gary off. As Gary regained his footing, he mustered the loudest howl he could do before the Ursines bore down on him. Hopefully that howl could alarm the police, or at least, hopefully that really was a police car he saw.

* * *

Larry, Boris and Wilfred were at the rooftops surveying the neighborhood. The buildings on their current vicinity were not very tall, and mostly dark and quiet, thus giving the team more freedom of moving at that hour. They had spent the last half an hour or so under the sky, and they had yet to find any signs of Gary. In fact, in the last five minutes or so, they had seen no one in the alleys.

At one point, Larry was surveying the alley grounds below him. Nobody. He sighed and walked back, signalling to Boris and Wilfred, who were on different rooftops, that he woud leap across. The two of them gave an OK sign, and they all proceeded to their respective next buildings. As what he had been doing before, Larry laid low as he resumed his surveying from this rooftop, occasionally using his binoculars. He then heard a beep from his transceiver.

"Larry, I think I saw a commotion going towards point 9A," Wilfred reported.

Somewhere to the north.

"Copy that," Larry responded, "We're going there anyway. Let's investigate carefully later."

"Roger," Both Wilfred and Boris replied.

"Raul, do you copy? We're going to 9A pretty soon, what's your location?"

"8B, that means we're 7 o'clock from 9A counting from north," came Raul's reply, "9B is at 11 o'clock from us."

"Copy that-"

Suddenly there was a howl coming not very far from the north, which went silent soon after. Larry froze. That howl sounded like Gary.

"Guys, I'm heading to 9A now, into the alleys," Larry immediately informed the pack.

"Roger that. I'll go there now," Raul responded.

"Where's Lucas?" Larry inquired as he dashed towards the sound of the howl.

"On my way," Lucas answer.

"Hang on, there's a police car west of 9A," Boris cautioned.

"Ok, see if you can find a safer route," Larry ordered.

"Lucas, continue eastward from 8B. Reanalyze the map to see where you need to go in," Raul ordered.

 _So Lucas did drive through back alleys_. Larry briefly chortled before resuming his run.

"I saw the commotion," Wilfred reported, "It's... him!"

Larry now saw Wilfred on a rooftop looking downwards into the alley. He noticed Boris coming from the west with his binoculars still in hand, and the three of them positioned themselves to view the alley down there. Larry could now confirm his fear as he saw three bears tossing a white wolf to the ground. Gary. He began seething.

"I'm in the alley now," Raul said, "I think I saw someone ahead."

"Gary down. Three hostile grizzlies confirmed," Larry informed, his slowed speech gave everyone the hint.

"Saw them," Connor exclaimed.

"Lucas, head to 9A now," Raul ordered.

As one of the bears turned around to notice Raul and Connor, the two howled, and the three on the rooftops prepared to join the imminent brawl.

* * *

Officer Jackson exited a small Snarlbucks cafe, gazing around the mostly empty streets. He was on night patrol around the Baobab area, and he was pleased that the place was generally peaceful. After taking a sip from his coffee, he walked towards his patrol car some twenty yards away when he heard a howl from across the street. He sighed. Did no one tell that wolf to quiet down this late at night?

Jackson was about to get in and drive away when he heard someone coming from an alley across the road, yelling for help. He saw a female moose emerge from the alley, pale and exhausted, clearly after running from something. Jackson locked his car and headed towards the moose, who was now staring at him as she trembled right in front of the alley.

"Miss, what happened? Did you get attacked by a wolf?"

"N-n-no. The wolf-" The moose clearly was panicked. Jackson then pulled her a little away from the alley as he began scrutinizing it. There seemed to be noises but he couldn't make out any figures, and the alley looked quite deep.

"All right, Miss, don't worry, I'll help. What happened?"

"A-a wolf is attacked b-by bears."

"I see," Jackson then helped the moose cross the road towards his car, "Did you notice how many?"

"One wolf and- and two- no, three bears, I think."

Jackson nodded as he began weighing his options of either defusing the brawl but leaving the civilian potentially unprotected, or waiting for backup.

"This is Jackson to dispatch. Civilian reports a 10-10 in an alley at 32 South Baobab Lane. One wolf and three bears suspected. Request backup."

"Roger, Officer Jackson," Clawhauser replied.

Jackson looked around after finishing his report. Perhaps he could ask the moose to wait indoors such as the Snarlbucks cafe he just exited, while he would carefully investigate the alleys. Or maybe...

"Do you live nearby, Miss?"

"Uh," the moose seemed to have calmed down a little, "Actually my house is at 23 East Lane, uh, Baobab Lane."

"Ah, that's not very far-"

A chorus of howls interrupted Jackson. There were more wolves in that same alley, two to three perhaps, and that howl could bring more. Could it be a gang war between wolves and bears?

"This is Jackson, update to dispatch," Jackson quickly called back to Clawhauser, "We may have a 10-15 in an alley at 32 South Baobab Lane. Wolves and bears. Estimated individuals involved is seven plus."

"Okay, Officer Jackson, let me find more backup. Oh, Officer Johnson is returning call, hang on," Clawhauser started talking to Johnson, "Yes, Officer Johnson? You and Officer Andersen are already within two miles from Officer Jackson, okay got it."

Jackson punched a few numbers on his intercom.

"Johnson, we may have a 10-15 here, seven plus mammals, do you copy?"

"10-4, Jackson, we're at 15 East Baobab Lane, will be there in three minutes," came Johnson's reply.

 _From the north_.

"Roger that."

After disconnecting, Jackson strained his ear hoping to get more clues on what's going on in the alleys. He thought he heard some fighting in the alleys. What happened? Jackson decided to wait for backup.

* * *

"Well, not so tough, huh, pup?" The bear sneered as he lifted Gary by the neck and slammed him to the wall.

"Damn wolf," a second bear angrily punched Gary in the gut, "Pretending not to remember us, yet you clawed my left cheek again like the last time."

"Maybe he just wants to give you a kiss there?" The third bear jested, much to the second one's displeasure.

"Whatever," the first bear then threw Gary to the ground, "You should know better than to sneak around where we are and even pick a fight with us."

"He really shouldn't mess with someone way bigger," the second bear retorted.

"Yeah," the first one replied, but then he noticed the third bear checking on Gary, "What are you doing?"

"Oh, I dunno, maybe I'm in the mood of some lunch money."

"Looting, huh," the second bear chuckled, "Eh, sure, some money to buy bandages for me won't hurt- wait, I heard something."

The three bears were interrupted by a howl, and they turned to see the source. Two wolves, who soon came charging at them. The bears all stood their ground bracing for the wolves.

"Oh, so this pup has friends?" The second bear assumed his fighting stance, "Come at me, ye pupsies."

Suddenly there was a loud thump and a yelp from behind the second bear. He instinctively turned around to see the third bear being jumped on by two wolves, as well as another wolf crashing on top of the first bear as the latter just became aware of what happened to their companion. One of the two charging wolves tackled the second bear as the other gave him a hard kick to the head, sending him crashing onto the wall. The third bear tried to struggle against the two wolves who landed right on him, but a few precise strikes all over his body brought him down. And while the first bear managed to knock away the wolf who crashed onto him, the other four bearing down on him were too much. The three bears were all knocked out in less than a minute.

As Boris and Connor rounded up the bears onto the wall, Larry checked on Gary, pale as he started imagining the worst things.

"Gary! Gary!"

Larry imagined he saw Gary twitching, or at least that's what he tried to tell himself as Gary gave no audible response. Wilfred made a preliminary examination on Gary.

"Still alive. But looks bad."

"See me, guys?" Lucas interrupted from the transceiver.

Raul heard the sound of their van and saw a flash of rear light.

"All clear," Raul replied as he saw Wilfred and Boris dashing to the van, then he went to Larry, "Here, let's get him to the van."

Larry nodded as he and Raul carried Gary to the van while Connor trailed to make sure there were no more threat. Boris and Lucas were already at the front seats, and Wilfred had prepared an impromptu bedding and first aids for Gary, and once all wolves got in, they drove off.

"What we have right now won't help him much," Wilfred stressed, "We need to get him to hospital."

"No!"

"Larry, I can't even tell right now if he's just bruised or already got a few broken bones. It's better if we get him to hospital now!"

"There were cops earlier, remember?" Larry countered Wilfred, even as he could agree with him.

"What of it?" Wilfred quizzed as he recalled Boris' warning about a police car.

"If we bring him to a public place, the cops will know he got into this mess. And I don't want the cops getting involved too much in this."

"Then what do you suggest?" Wilfred retorted even as he understood that Larry's stance stemmed from the fact they they had been in jail before; the authorities might be prejudiced against them.

"A doctor not associated with public facility?" Raul surmised.

"Madge?" Lucas responded.

After a pause, Larry asked, "Will that work?"

"I think that's a good idea," Wilfred smiled, "She hasn't regained her license, but she's still a medic."

Larry nodded as Raul ordered Boris and Lucas, "You two, check the map and see if we can find a way to reach Dr. Madge as fast as possible."

With that, the wolves took a detour westward to reach Dr. Madge. Larry could only hope Gary could make it through all this.

* * *

Jackson returned to 32 South Baobab Lane to find a few ZPD officers on the scene. He just went back from escorting the moose, who introduced herself as Serfin, to her home, and he estimated eight to ten minutes have passed since Johnson and Andersen met with him and offered to watch over the alley while he took the moose back. In addition to Johnson's car, there were four more, but they had begun departing the scene. As the cars passed by him, Jackson saw three of them contained a bear each, but there was no other perpetrator. Andersen then came up to Jackson as the latter got off his car.

"Looks like we missed out quite a lot," Andersen began.

Jackson merely raised an eyebrow.

"There were three bears who had been beaten up, but we," Andersen gestured to both himself and Johnson who was positioning himself beside Andersen, "didn't see any wolves."

"No wolves?" Jackson queried, but then he thought of something else, "Wait, you're telling me the other officers didn't go in with you?"

"We did think of waiting for backup considering you said there might be at least seven perps in there," Andersen explained, "but things went too quiet after a minute or so, so we decided to go in."

Jackson didn't know what to say. _Geez, guys, don't be so reckless_.

"And we arrived at what probably was the fight scene, with those three bears already out cold and nobody else around."

"Were they shot?"

"No. In fact, apparently there was no weapon involved. At most one bear got clawed on the cheek."

"We'll probably figure it out once we interrogate the bears," Johnson interrupted, "The most logical guess is that if there were wolves, they fled after the fight."

Jackson scratched his chin. The entire unrest lasted for too short a time, with a possibility of it ending at the same time Johnson and Andersen met him. His estimate based on the howls was that there were probably four wolves, while the civilian estimated three bears. Theoretically speaking, it wasn't impossible for the fight itself to end fast, but for the bears to be taken down so thoroughly like that, the wolves would have needed firearms, which Andersen had debunked. If the number of wolves were higher, trouncing the bears so badly in such a short time barehanded might be possible, but if that howl indeed were to summon more wolves, the resulting mob would have been very noisy and might not have escaped notice in that short time frame. And yet Johnson and Andersen didn't find any sign of wolves. What happened, actually?

"Jackson?" Johnson puzzled.

"Ah? Oh," Jackson snapped out of his thought, "Nevermind. That civilian moose earlier was a witness anyway. We'll ask her at a later time."

"Ok."

The three of them then returned to their cars. Jackson then gestured to the other two that he'd report to dispatch, and the two saluted back as they left. After informing Clawhauser about what he, Johnson and Andersen discussed, he resumed his Baobab patrol.

* * *

"Thanks for your help, Doctor," Larry shook Dr. Madge's hand as he also took glances towards Gary.

"Happy to help," the badger smiled back, "I'm still a bit shocked how sudden you were looking for me over midnight like that. Especially with Gary being so badly roughed up."

Dr. Madge then spared a glimpse at Gary.

"Quite the sturdy one, isn't he?" she continued, "I was worried that since he was beaten to unconsciousness, he might have suffered severe internal injuries, but turns out everything is manageable."

Larry made a smile without noticing. Dr. Madge then turned towards Larry somewhat grumpily.

"But seriously, Larry, why did you bring him to me instead of the hospital?"

Larry was taken aback as he quickly replied, "I-I just don't want him handled by some stranger."

"Wilfred has a point, you know. This time, Gary's injuries are something I can still manage, but this is not a hospital, and I don't have the best medical equipments. Had his injuries been worse, the time you would have wasted sending him to hospital from here could have killed him."

Larry flinched. Ever since that jailtime, he had steeled himself against getting help from outsiders, especially authorities, on dealing with his pack given that their reputation had gone unsavory. And yet he couldn't refute Dr. Madge's words; by denying Gary the best possible help in the worst situation, he could have lost Gary forever. Larry sighed with a defeated tone, and Wilfred tried to think of what to say to defuse the situation.

"Actually, Doc, do you think it would have helped if we were to take Gary to Cliffside? I mean, that place is practically a hospital." Wilfred began asking.

"Pretty sure Larry would disagree," Dr. Madge rebutted as she noticed Larry collapsing on a chair beside Gary, "I heard that ever since the Night Howler incident, the place had been regularly patroled by ZPD. And besides, that place is still far from here anyway."

"Oh," Wilfred scoffed.

"Thanks again, anyway," Larry mumbled without looking away from Gary. Dr. Madge shook her head and gazed on the window, realizing that it was almost midday.

"You two haven't slept for hours now," Dr. Madge told the wolves, "I'll prepare some bed-"

"Oh, no, no, Doc, you also haven't slept," Wilfred declined, "You go get your rest on a nice bed. We'll make do with the sofa or chairs or whatever here."

"Erm-"

"It's ok, Doc. Our fault also that we bugged you at the wrong hour like that."

"Well, if you say so," Dr. Madge conceded, "You can take some cushions from the living room. Sorry I don't have big pillows."

"Thanks, Doctor," Larry replied.

For the next few hours, Larry sat by Gary. He was at once glad that Gary was still alive and worried that the worst had not passed. It weren't just the bruises which Larry was concerned about, but that Gary had lost quite a weight. At times he petted Gary, asking gently for him to wake up even as he knew it wouldn't happen so soon. At other times, he communicated with Raul, whom he had put in charge of the base while he and Wilfred stayed at Dr. Madge's house to take care of Gary. That night, Lucas and Connor came by, both to visit Gary and to bring some food for the two caretaking wolves.

The next morning, when Larry entered Gary's room after a shower, he heard a few grunts and noticed that Gary's eyes were half open. Larry was beaming as he sat by Gary, who soon replied with a weak stare. Larry merely held Gary's paw, and Gary wasn't sure if Larry was crying. He then tried to get up.

"Hey, hey, easy there," Larry gently held Gary down, "You just woke up."

"Where... is this?" Gary sounded confused.

"Dr. Madge's house. You were-" Larry wiped his eyes before continuing, "you were- you got me worried there."

Gary looked on, unsure what to say.

"Rest first. I'll get her to check on you," Larry then gestured Gary to lie down, then bolted outside half-yelling, "Doctor! Wilfred! He's awake!"

Some thirty minutes later, Dr. Madge finished her examination on Gary, and joyfully informed that Gary might be able to recover well enough in two or three days. As Gary looked at Larry, he thought Larry really was about to cry. Dr. Madge then left the wolves by themselves.

That late afternoon, after answering a call from Raul outside Gary's room, Larry came in to find Gary seated on the bed. Larry wasn't sure what to feel; He was happy that Gary was making a swift recovery, but Gary himself looked very depressed, if that word were enough to explain. Larry then sat by Gary, who didn't immediately look back.

Larry's first words after some silence was, "You ok?"

"No," was Gary's thought, but somehow he couldn't even shake his head.

"If you're still not feeling well," Larry continued as he gently stroked Gary's head, "lie down and rest first."

"I just," Gary uttered something, "I just can't do anything right, can I?"

Larry was silent, but he intently waited for Gary's next words.

"I screwed you up, and- and I... can't even do anything right on my own."

Part of Larry wanted to chide Gary for that nonsense, but he realized that was not what Gary- no, that was not what the two of them needed right now. Gary then turned to Larry with such sullen eyes that Larry instinctively rubbed Gary's eyes as though there were tears. When was the last time he wiped tears off someone? That didn't matter. He waited to see if Gary had anything else to say, and only began talking after some silence.

"You're not a screw-up, Gary."

"I can't even solve my own problems, that I still end up needing your help," Gary listlessly drooped. Larry paused as if scrambling for words.

"You're not perfect, I-I think I can say that," Larry fumbled as he scolded himself for saying something that might have been hurtful, "But you've been a great mate. And you're still surviving."

Larry wished Gary smiled upon hearing that, but Gary shook his head and replied, "But you're better off without me ruining you all."

Larry sighed as he patted Gary's shoulder.

"What can I say for you to change your mind, Gary? Look, what's done is done. That's just a lesson for us for the future. You shouldn't just think that everything is your fault and that by suddenly leaving us you would have taken away all our problems, that you would no longer burden us by just-"

Larry wasn't sure what to say. Had he done something, said something all this time that made Gary believe that he should solve his problems alone, to the point of pinning all the blame of the pack's problems to himself due to one mistake he made? Well, that by itself wasn't the issue. Larry had always believed that what happened with the pack should be solved by the pack. Or perhaps it was precisely that mentality he had instilled to Gary that eventually led to this? Larry shook his head. Perhaps he needed to rethink a few things. He then gently turned Gary to face him.

"Please tell me, Gary. If you think you're a screw-up, do you not trust me to help you overcome that?"

It was almost imperceptible, but Larry could feel his question jolted Gary.

"I'm proud of your determination to tackle your mistakes, your shortcomings. But I don't- I just don't like it when you got a big problem and you just go and try fix it yourself without telling me. You're-" Larry appeared as if he were struggling for breath, "I don't want to you just leave like that because you think you're just letting me down. I don't want you to think that you are the source of my problems, because that just untrue."

Larry was imagining tears welling up in Gary's eyes. Or maybe his own eyes were also getting wet.

"Or... is it that living in a pack isn't like how you want it to be? Am I troubling you in any way?"

"No!" came Gary's sudden reply that stunned Larry, "No... I..."

Larry rubbed Gary's eyes, which now really had become watery.

"I just think that... I'm not good enough for you all. For you, who took me in."

"Don't think that way. Please. I would never know how worse off we would be if not because of you, and I'm glad I don't have to find out. But one thing for sure," Larry then wrapped himself over Gary, "I'm glad to have you."

"But I can't even help myself- save myself-"

"That's why I want you back with us. If you're still not confident with yourself, we'll- I'll support you."

"I can come back- you want me back? After all this?" Gary began blubbering.

"To me," Larry also started crying in joy, "you have never left."

Larry didn't know if Gary said anything as his white wolf broke into tears. The two of them spent the next moment in each other's embrace, happy to be together again.


	4. Chapter 4

Two days passed as Gary recuperated under Dr. Madge's care, with Larry and Wilfred keeping watch over him and the others visiting on their spare time. Yesterday, Dr. Madge remarked that Gary had healed well enough to return to his daily routine, so today Gary, Larry and Wilfred would be returning to their Tundratown base. Before that, though, they would go to Gary's rented place at Savannah Central to pack up and leave for good.

After a morning shower and perking up, Gary began to leave his room, no, the room he spent a few days recuperating in. He took a look around it as if saying goodbye, even though he knew that with Dr. Madge being a friend of the pack, such sentiment would be unnecessary. This wasn't even his house, anyway. The pack might pay her another visit when the situation called for it. Gary shook his head. Was he being too giddy from the prospect of going home that he ended up thinking such trivial things? He then just closed the room and bolted outside to see Larry, Wilfred and Dr. Madge in the living room.

"Glad to see you're doing well," Dr. Madge greeted Gary.

"Yeah," Gary gave a rather sheepish reply, "Thanks for everything, Doctor."

"Well, that's what friends are for, right?"

Friends, huh? Gary wasn't sure if that was the right word. Family sounded better, but he felt that such a word need not be spoken, or maybe that wasn't the proper term either, but nevermind.

"Boris is already outside," Wilfred informed Larry, "Should we take off now or should I ask him to wait a bit?"

"Let's leave soon," Larry replied, then turned to Dr. Madge, "Thanks again for helping us, Doctor."

"Sure," Dr. Madge, "don't worry, if you're going to be busy later, make haste. We can always chat again some other time."

The wolves nodded as they exited Dr. Madge's house and got in their van, and as Boris drove off the wolves waved goodbye to Dr. Madge. They then went straight to Gary's rent, located somewhere around Elm St. It took Gary no longer than fifteen minutes to pack up everything by himself and speak to the landlord that he was leaving. The landlord inquired about Gary's utter absence from the flat for a few days, to which Gary only replied he had to go out of town on short notice and just returned very recently, and the landlord replied nothing. On the way back to the wolves' Tundratown base, Gary perused his belongings that he just packed up from the flat as Larry looked on without saying a word. Gary then checked his phone, to which Larry took notice wordlessly. Gary glanced aside towards Larry, then smiled as he began reading his messages.

"I mostly worked odd jobs those days," Gary opened up.

"Well, that doesn't sound so different from what we've always been doing," Larry continued.

"Yeah, but in retrospect," Gary let out a sigh, "I think that just didn't work out well."

Larry merely patted Gary on the shoulder, then began running his paw on Gary's arm.

"Then I guess I should fix that up," Larry smiled as he locked eyes with Gary, "First, you need to be fattened back up."

The wolves chuckled. Then Larry noticed Gary focusing on his phone, though he said nothing yet. Gary then gazed out the window, apparently restless. Something he read had bothered him.

"What's wrong?"

That jolted Gary.

"Oh, um..."

Larry didn't speak, though his face hinted his questions.

"My last client," Gary then spoke up.

"Ah," Larry only replied with a smile.

"I was escorting her home when we came across some bears," Gary continued as Larry nodded in understanding. So that was what happened.

"Sounds like it's a hostile neighborhood."

"I guess so. But that wasn't the first time I scuffled with them, actually."

Larry then patted Gary again as he said, "Considering what we do, making enemies is just a natural consequence. I'm just glad that you manage to survive through all those."

"But-"

"Hush," Larry quickly gestured Gary to stop, "Whatever it is you're trying to tell me, I will say this: I will not let you suffer your problems on your own, especially if that problem could kill you."

Gary then wordlessly grasped Larry's paw and shook it. Some silence passed before Larry started asking Gary again.

"So, what did your last client say?"

"She's asking if I'm ok, and also if the cops have called me."

"The cops?" Larry sounded nervous. Gary only nodded.

"While we were chased by those bears, I thought I saw a police car some distance away and I told her to run for it. So it really was a police car, after all," said Gary with a relief.

Larry then gazed on Gary's phone as he asked, "So, did the police really call?"

"There seemed to be a few miscalls," Gary replied, "I know some of these numbers, though there's a few unknown callers. The police may be one."

"It'd be best you don't return any of them yet," Boris chimed in, "Give me the numbers later. I'll look through them later and let you know which is who."

"Thanks."

Gary could surmise why Boris said that, and why Larry didn't seem fond of the police's involvement, so he said no more words about it.

"Oh, and you said your client asked if you're ok?" Larry asked.

"Oh, yes."

"Then tell her you're fine, and that you haven't heard from the police yet."

"Ok."

Gary then continued messaging as Larry looked on. Larry's own phone then buzzed and he checked it out, and he smiled as he began relaying what he read.

"Raul told us Lionheart wants to see us again tomorrow. Same place, same time."

"Ok," Wilfred and Boris nodded.

"That's cool," Gary perked up, "You guys still keep in touch with him?"

"I guess it may have more to do with the fact that he was Zootopia's disgraced mayor and that we were his accomplices," Larry replied somewhat gravely, though he smiled as he turned towards Gary, "Though it does look like he has taken a liking to us, going so far as asking about you the last time."

"Oh?"

"Why don't you talk to him tomorrow? He'll probably be all business about it, but some small talk wouldn't hurt."

Gary only nodded. His phone then buzzed, and he looked at it in a slight bewilderment as more messages poured in. Larry was curious.

"So the bottom line is," Gary tried to summarize the wall of text he was reading, "she's happy that I'm okay in the end, and she wanted to actually pay me for my service, but she's currently not in town."

"That's rough," Larry replied. All those trouble and Gary would not be receiving compensation? What the hell. He's glad he got to bring Gary back with the pack; anymore of this kind of client and Gary might end up starving to death. Larry then glanced af Gary as if awaiting for response.

"I'll just keep in touch with her in this case," Gary sounded deflated, then he looked at Larry who wore the same kind of expression, "Sorry. I guess going solo wasn't really a good idea."

"Really," Larry retorted. Gary could feel slight ire from him.

The pack just entered Tundratown when Gary's phone rang.

"Hello? ... Oh, Iryn, hi! ... Tomorrow at your office? ... Oh, I see. Ok. ... Ok. ... I have something else to do tomorrow, can I confirm the timing later? ... Ok, great, see you."

Larry wondered what happened as he saw Gary beaming. Gary then shared the story.

"So, my last client, name's Serfin, by the way, is friends with this bear Iryn whose dad hired me some time back," Gary explained in cheer, "And since Serfin is out of town, Iryn wants me to see her at her dad's office to pay me instead."

"That's... great!" Larry cheered, but then he noticed Gary suddenly looking troubled, "Uh, what's wrong?"

"Is it- Are you ok with this?" Gary asked to Larry's bewilderment, "I mean, I'm back with you guys, and I-"

"Oh, silly boy," Larry patted Gary's head in relief, "That Serfin is your client, right? Yours. So whatever you get for that job, you've earned it. Don't think about us for this."

Gary perked up, though there was still a hint of nervousness.

"We'll be meeting Lionheart tomorrow at The Vistas, Downtown, at 4. So how about we take you to that Iryn at, 2? 3?" Larry scratched his head as he continued his questions, "Uh, where's the place, by the way?"

"Here," Gary showed a screenshot of the address.

"Oh, good, not very far from The Vistas. Ask her if she can see you at 3."

"Ok," Gary then proceeded to make a call, "Hello? ... Hi, Iryn, what about I see you at 3 tomorrow? ... Great! ... Ok, bye!"

Not very long after, the wolves arrived at their Tundratown base. Wilfred insisted on helping to carry Gary's stuffs back to his room and blitzed off as Larry and Boris flanked Gary on their way to the living room. Larry then nudged Gary to open the door much to Gary's curiosity as he did so.

"Welcome home!"

Gary was awed at what he saw. Raul, Lucas and Connor were in the room. There were some lavish dishes on the table at the center, and there was also a hung banner that said "Welcome back, Gary!" Gary beamed as the three in the room rushed to hug him.

"Welcome back," Larry told Gary. The white wolf could hear the other's voice cracking as Larry joined in the group hug.

"Thanks. Thanks, guys," Gary could only give a soft reply while wiping his eyes.

The wolves enjoyed their celebratory dinner as they exchanged stories, as the rest of the pack were itching to hear from Gary about his days away from the pack, and at the same time eager to share their life without Gary around. At times Gary repeatedly apologized for running away like that, but in the end they all thought as long as Gary was back, everything would be fine.

It was almost midnight when Gary got back to his old room with Larry following closely. Gary stood motionless for a while after opening the door. The room was tidy; no doubt Larry must have been taking care of it all those time, except during his recovery days, in which case it was probably Connor who cleaned it up. Wilfred had stashed Gary's stuffs by the desk opposite of the bed, and as Gary sat on the bed, Larry sat beside him. Larry then petted Gary before telling him to get a good rest and leaving the room, though not before hinting at the desk. Gary smiled. He was now home again. Maybe for now he would get a rest and deal with everything tomorrow.

* * *

Gary looked at himself in the mirror as he buttoned up his jacket. When was the last time he wore that jacket, the pack's official business attire? He grinned as he straightened up. Today was shaping up to be a little busy, but that one good night's rest was reinvigorating enough. And that warm morning shower felt so pleasant, he ended up under the shower for half an hour, much to his pack's amusement. Or was he singing too loudly in the shower? Anyway, and that creamy morning soup was divine; Who cooked that? Gary chuckled at his own imagination. He then checked his desk and opened the drawers one by one. They still contained the same stuffs from that night when he ran away, except for one drawer which he remembered was empty but now housed his old phone. He sighed as he perused it, finding out that Larry had called him perhaps about the time when he just decided to head to the train station that night. Gary shook his head. Those were bygones, and he would rather not think more of it on account on how much stress it gave Larry.

Some hours later, Gary, along with Larry, Lucas and Raul, was on the way to the building where Iryn's father's office was. Gary had asked Larry before if it would be ok if he were to tell some his contacts that he was changing his number, and Larry didn't mind as long as the numbers were not the ones Boris had barred based on his screening.

"Okay, I'll be back soon," Gary told his packmates once they arrived at the office building, and they merely nodded as they waited in their van. Gary then found Iryn in the office, her father being absent for the day.

"Good to see you well, Gary," Iryn greeted as she reached for an envelope. Gary nodded merrily.

"Gotta say I'm surprised you managed to get away from the Ursines, though. Serfin told me she thought you were dead."

"Well, that was indeed rough," Gary sheepishly chuckled, "I also thought I might not make it."

"But you got some help, I take it? Serfin said there was a few howls after running away from the Ursines."

"Some... unexpected help, yes."

"Sorry that it happened," Iryn sighed, "I heard from Serfin she wanted to take shortcut home so late at night. That idiot."

"She just didn't want to reach home so late."

"Seriously, what was she thinking? Just because she hired you doesn't mean she could just drag you right into danger like that."

"She probably never knew about the Ursines," Gary mused, "Anyway, at least all's well in the end."

"If you say so," Iryn then handed over the envelope, "Anyway, like I said, Serfin won't be able to see you for the next few days, so I'll pay you in her place. She'll pay me back anytime later."

"Thanks," Gary replied as he slipped the envelope into his jacket, while at the same time giving her a folded up note, "Oh, by the way, if you need to contact me in the future, I'll be using a new number."

"Oh? Just how bad was your animosity with the Ursines that you even had to change your number?" Iryn hinted a chortle as she read the number in the note.

"It was something unrelated, actually, I guess. My... brother gave me that phone." _Eh, she didn't need to know the details for now._

"Wow. I wonder how he felt if he knew you do dirty businesses like this."

"He gave me an earful the other day, actually," Gary replied, and Iryn chuckled with him.

"Well," Iryn adjusted her glasses, "I guess I'll have to go back to work."

"Ok," Gary stood up and saluted Iryn, "Thanks again."

"Yeah, same here."

Gary only nodded as he left. Well, perhaps if Iryn were to ask for his help again, it would be the pack's business, no his own anymore. He hasted outside thinking to head to the parking lot, but he found the other three standing outside the building instead.

"Whoops, did I make you wait?" Gary spoke.

"No, not really," Larry replied as the four of them began walking northward, "The Vistas is within walking distance from this building."

"Parked there," Lucas chimed.

So they planned to leave immediately after meeting Lionheart. Gary merely nodded.

It was a few minutes before 4 when Gary and Larry entered The Vistas while Lucas and Raul waited nearby. The bar was rather quiet, like the last time Larry came to meet Lionheart. And in fact Lionheart was seated at the same table as the one before. Lionheart waved at them with a big smile, and the two sat across him upon being gestured to.

"Pleasure to meet you again, Larry," Lionheart greeted before turning towards Gary, "and you too, Gary."

Both wolves replied with a smile and a small salute.

"I didn't get a chance to speak to you directly yesterday," Lionheart talked to Larry, "but I believe you, both I suppose, are aware of my request this time?"

"You are following up with the visit from your guests the last time by paying them a visit in return, yes?"

"Correct," Lionheart confirmed, at the same time catching a glimpse of Gary. The white wolf appeared noticeably excited like the last time. Lionheart smiled before he continued.

"I will bring along four others with me, and I'm planning a three-car convoy, and we will be departing in two days. I trust that is reasonable enough?"

"It is, Sir."

Lionheart then handed over an envelope to Larry. It was noticeably thicker than the last time.

"You can read all the details inside."

Larry merely nodded as he slipped the envelope into his jacket.

"It's great to see you two looking chipper," Lionheart proceeded, "Especially you, Gary. I heard you were unwell the last time."

"Eh, that happened, Sir," Gary replied, trying to not look too sheepish as he spared a glance at Larry, who then playfully jabbed him back under the table, "But I've never felt better."

"Sounds great. Well, I'm afraid I have another appointment in fifteen minutes," Lionheart then stood up, and the two wolves followed as the three of them left The Vistas, "We can talk again another day."

"Of course, Sir," the wolves spoke in unison, much to each other's amusement as they traded sly glances. Lionheart only made a mild chuckle.

That evening, Larry shared the mission with the pack, although he said a full discussion would be held only tomorrow. After Larry briefed the pack of whatever would be needed in general, the packmembers went off to do their own works that night. Lucas and Boris was in the garage to tune up the van, Raul was at the computer working on documentations, Wilfred was in the storeroom to check some supplies, and Connor was tidying up the pack's wardrobe.

Gary was in his room, staring outside the window. He earlier had helped Raul with the documents, as well as Wilfred with ferrying some supplies into the storeroom, and now he was spare. There certainly would be more works tomorrow, and then the following day would be the start of a major job for the pack. Gary felt a little nervous. It's been months since the last time he worked on anything so significant. Would he be ready- No, the better question would be whether he could execute the job properly. He still feel doubts on whether he should work with the pack.

Gary heard a knock on the door, though as it was ajar, he didn't need to do anything as Larry came in with a bowl of food. He put the food, some milky broth, at the desk and then approached Gary as the two leaned at the window. They merely traded smiles for a while before Larry spoke up.

"Are you worried about something?"

Gary didn't immediately answer, but his fidgeting hinted that he didn't want to say what he was thinking.

"Is it that you feel this big job comes too soon?"

A pause later, Gary nodded. Larry then wrapped his arm over Gary's shoulder.

"Then you should get your rest soon. That broth should help you relax."

"Actually..."

"... Yes?"

Gary slumped as he continued, "I'm just... just worried that I..."

"Worried that you'll what?" Larry pressed the question as gently as he could. It seems that Gary was still plagued with self-doubt.

"That I'll hinder you."

Larry proceeded to muss up Gary's head, and the white wolf sheepishly smiled back.

"This is a pack job, Gary. I'll support you, just as how you'll support us."

"Yeah, but..."

"Have faith in yourself, Gary. Do your best, tell yourself you can do it. If you falter, I'll help."

Gary wasn't sure if he should force a smile.

"I sometimes think that perhaps I wasn't careful enough to cover your shortcomings, but this time, I'll make sure whatever the problem is, I won't let them get to you."

Gary merely turned to to Larry with the happiest smile Larry recalled he had ever seen. Never had Gary felt this... well, even he couldn't quite describe the kind of joy he was feeling right now. Gary then looked out to the city, took a deep breath and exhaled in bliss. _Tomorrow would be a better day_ ; that's what he would believe.


End file.
